A New Kind of Zerg
by Snap23212
Summary: The story of human survivors trying to live alongside Zerg, who's ties to the Overmind have been severed.
1. Starting over

A New Kind of Zerg

Sertum III, a small, backwater world in one of the abandoned sectors of the Talon IV asteroid belt. A planet so worthless that even the Zerg ignored it. It was small, insignificant, and out of the way. It was the perfect place to be if you didn't want to draw attention to yourself, or if you were doing something that could get you killed if anyone found out.

Experimentation on Zerg wasn't a new thing. The confederation had been doing it since they were first introduced to the new species, bur they did make it law that noone is allowed to perform these experiments without proper authorization. For this reason, non-confederate and private investors who wanted to continue their research, had to hide their actions on dead worlds to avoid possible persecution. Sertum III was one of those worlds.

Though their experimentations did have to be performed in secret, people were still needed to provide both resources and personnel for the labs. The planet was originally populated with roughly fifty colonists. As the need for more manpower grew however, the population grew too. Fifty people is not enough to repopulate a planet, but it is enough to populate a butchery, and a butchery is exactly what that planet became.

The scientists working on Sertum III were trying to determine exactly how the connection could remain so strong between the Overmind and its minions. They compared the brain structure and function of most species of animals to that of several Zerg strains. They were able to determine that a mutation in the cerebellum, the lower back of the brain, was how the Overmind was able to apply it's will and control the behaviour of the Zerg race. They also discovered that many of the Zerg strains were actually different species of animals found through the galaxy who's DNA had been assimilated and genetically modified to serve the Zerg's twisted goals.

Those in charge of the medical experiments decided to try and sever the Overmind's control over their live test subjects. They were able to succeed in this task and revert the "animals" mentality back to before the Zerg's taint. They presumed that the creatures, without the will of the Swarm to guide them, would become peaceful creatures like their unmodified ancestors. This assumption proved fatal and cost them their lives. Yes, the former Zerg subjects they harbored no longer served the Swarm, but they were anything but peaceful. The medical technicians who worked the labs failed to realize the fact that though these creatures were no longer being fuelled by the will of the Overmind, they were still originally, savagely heinous races before their mutations.

The people of Sertum III were slaughtered. They played God and payed the ultimate price for it. Like any other animal, the newly "freed" critters, finding themselves in a strange new world in a strange new existence, lashed out and defended their beings. Violently. Those in the immediate presence of these beasts were to first to be cut down, teeth gnashing. The instinctive animalistic fury doomed the doctors before they could even register the situation in their heads. As the number of dead continued to rise, so did the Zerg's efficiency. After a few kills, they began to experiment themselves and conform to their new bodies. Now, along with the use of teeth, were the use of razor sharp scythes and poisonous spines. By the time the last member of on-duty staff present in the lab was exterminated, the Zerg forces were already at their peak performance.

They then proceeded to clear the inhabitants of the rest of the base. They killed without remorse; man, women, child, it made no difference.

As soon as they felt as though the threat were gone, they left to find a new home. All of the newly liberated, self-directing, self-governing, self-ruling, Zerg strains expressed both a common tendency towards social interaction, as well as individualism. They all worked and communicated together, but each one was an individual with individual characteristics. The different species, though were not hostile towards each other and did socialize with each other well, obviously did not pack together. Each race preferred to live and work with their own kind.

The Zergling's social structure closely resembled that of the now extinct wolf pack, but with some obvious differences. The packs were much larger and ranged from a dozen, up to about fifty or sixty Zerglings per pack. Though their communicative skills were restored to their former state, their intellectual capacity changed very little. This meant that though they could plan and coordinate their attacks on prey, the tactics were restricted to little more than the "surround, sneak in close, then run in for the kill as fast as possible." Though this method was crude and simple, it did prove quite efficient for the quick Zerglings.

The former Hydralisks proved to be a more reserved and reclusive. They stayed in groups of up to, at most, six. They were typically found in groups of three or four. They were also fiercely territorial. Though they did not attack other Zerg unprovoked, they did attack those who ventured too far into their marked territory. For their large size, they were surprisingly stealthy. When hunting they tended to use their scythes in opposed to firing their poison spines, which were used more as a last resort if the element of stealth could not be properly achieved.

The Mutalisks where an exception to the other Zerg strains. They did not instantly revert back to their previous instinctive habits like the others did. When they were freed, they stayed separated and secluded. They also did not attack those who previously imprisoned them. While the other races broke free from their tempered glass, gelatinous filled stasis cells, the Mutalisks remained confined and instead reverted to a state closely resembling hibernation. They only escaped the compound about a week later when the lab experienced a total system shutdown, releasing them from their stasis tanks. They also did not socialize or interact at all with the other fugitives. As soon as they escaped, they scoured the surrounding area and established their new home in the cliffs above an expansive lake, a few dozen miles north-east of the compound.

Their behavior in nature was completely baffling. They were completely nocturnal and were only active at night. During the day they would recede into caves they dug into the cliff face and slept. Their bodies still produced the dreaded glaive wurms, but served no purpose to the Mutalisks other than for defensive purposes. At night, they fished. Fish ,and whatever other aquatic animals they could catch, was what their main diet consisted of. For this reason, they stayed at the lake and were never found very far away from a large body of water.

Defilers were the scavengers of the Zerg. They did not hunt, and adversely could not hunt if they wanted to. They had no true means of attack and their host of skills where solely used as a last means of defense. They tended to hang around groups of Zerglings and Hydralisks, feeding off the scraps left behind. They were for the most part loners, usually only one was found accompanying any given group at any one time. On extremely rare occasions, they could be found in pairs, either scavenging or picking off the weak and dying, eating the animal alive.

Finally, a single Ultralisk could be seen wandering throughout the entire planet. Due to it's massive size, the lab only harbored one of them. Surprisingly though, the Ultralisk left to it's own devices, turned out to be completely vegetarian instead of carnivorous like it's former brethren, despite it's ferocity. All other animals of the planet quickly learned to respect the titan. Even though it was the most dangerous and obviously unrivaled, it did not attack unprovoked. This mutual understanding meant that the ultralisk was free to come and go throughout the entire planet as it please. In some cases, it was even a welcoming sight. The presence of the Ultralisk meant safety for many smaller animals, who tended to stay close for protection.

The rest of the Zerg strains, unfortunately, were not as versatile as their companions and died off soon after their release. The three Queens within the compound could not survive without the will of the Overmind. Out of the three Queens that went through the lobotomy, only one survived the separation between itself and it's supportive consciousness light-years away. The lone queen suffered from insanity soon after. Within 24 hours of it's escape from the lab, it committed suicide by chocking itself on it's own sticky, green, "Ensnare" fluid. The body was also infected with several of it's own parasites and an attempted broodling spawning, which consumed a large, gaping hole in it's side, still bleeding and raw leading into it's body cavity. Within the cavity were two, grotesquely distorted, partially formed broodling fetuses.

The Zerg Larva, being the closest to a true Zerg strain, were not being experimented on. Also, it's ability to mutate into other Zerg strains, scared the researchers. For these reasons, Larva were neither held in the compound, nor the planet. Drones were also restricted from the planet for the same reasons. If a single drone were able to mutate, the entire population of the planet could be in jeopardy. Scourges, though they did escape unharmed, died off within a few days from starvation. With no way to hunt without destroying themselves in the process, they quickly succumbed to lack of nourishment. Finally, because of the overlord's sheer size, in addition to it's direct influence over the other Zerg in the area, Overlords were not allowed to be brought to the planet.

Within two and a half months, all species of animal on the planet had establishes an equilibrium with each other. Each having their own respective territories, each having a natural balance with the world around them. On any other planet, if Zerg were present as well, the planet would be assimilated. Here though, life went on, Zerg lived together instead of competed for supremacy. Here, everything lived in harmony...

Including the last three surviving humans on the planet.


	2. First impressions

He was lost, lost and afraid. The cool night air was uncomfortably heated by the surrounding flames. Everything was burning. There was fire everywhere. The heat drying his tears almost instantly, the salt making his face itch. By now, the screams had stopped, though the odd plea for help or mercy could be heard every so often before they were abruptly cut short.

_He was small for his age. Twelve years old; old enough to know what's going on, but young enough to be terrified into almost total paralysis. The building was quickly burning around him. Everything was being consumed by the ever growing inferno. With all the courage he could muster, he tried to find a way out. He touched a doorknob that would lead him outside the house, and immediately drew his hand back, pain coursing through his singed fingertips._

_He began crying harder. The realization that he truly was alone sank in. His fear turned into desperation. He let out an ungodly whine, drowned out by the ferocious roar of flame and groans on the building's support structure, as he grabbed the glowing-hot handle again. The door gave way after he turned the knob and rammed his shoulder against it as hard as he could. The smell of cooking meat infiltrated his nose and surrounded his senses as he pried his hand off the metal it was seared to. Wide teary eyes, slightly glazed over with shock and trauma, watched as his house burned and collapsed._

_With nowhere left to go, he sank to the ground, clutching his mutilated hand. He took a deep, strained breath, and let out a cry of agony that festered in both his body, and soul._

_Slowly, the shrill cry then started to change. It started sounding...less human, almost mechanic. It kept morphing and changing and growing louder until it became almost deafening. Though unexpected, this strange new sound was familiar, and stirred some sort of feeling of urgency. _The realization struck him hard.

* * *

A pair of dark brown eyes snapped open. The cold metallic room was bathed in a flashing red light, reminiscent of the harsh flames he could have sworn were real just moments earlier. That same shrill cry from the dream sounded in time with the flashing, red, emergency beacon. After the initial few seconds of shock wore off, the sweat soaked figure jumped out of bed and fled the room, rifle in hand. Slipping the sling over his short brown hair and across his lean body, he secured the rifle across his back. Racing down the cold metallic hallway, the normally calming blueish hue was engulfed by the frantic red floodlights. Bracing his boots on either side and only gripping loosely, he slid down the ladder at the end of the hall. Past another two corners, one staircase up, and another ladder down, another male figure could be seen racing in the same direction.

"What the hell took ya so long Zee? Sure took your sweet time gettin' here!" hollered back the black haired man.

"Gimme' a break, I just woke up. What's your excuse? You ain't exactly miles ahead of me." Zeke called back.

"Save it." Cole said as he turned the last corner and took a seat next to one of the many monitors in the room. "So what have we got?" he asked, turning his attention to a dark haired woman already in the room.

The woman stood up from her seat and motioned for Zeke to take a look at one of the monitors. He leaned over and studied the readouts on the screen. After typing in a few commands on the keyboard, the screen changed to a black and white, live video-feed. Another command and the picture changed again. The grey background became a dusty yellowish brown color, and the dark grey shrubbery became a dull green. Another command typed in and the picture on the screen began to pan left. There it was, a ten foot tall beast, shuffling into view on screen. The color purple, bleeding into the normally white, symmetrical patters on its back, shoulders, and head plate.

"Hydralisk." The word escaped all three mouths in unison.

"So what you think Mac?" Cole asked.

"It's a little earlier than normal, but nothing too serious. We should probably start spraying as soon as possible. You want to take care of this one Zeke?" The girl exclaimed, eyeing Zeke's rifle.

"Might as well. I'll be back in a couple hours." And with that, he disappeared out the doorway.

* * *

The door to the garage opened, a single beam of light cut across the huge open hanger through the small doorway. A lean hand fumbled along the wall beside the door for a moment, before finally grabbing a hold of a large lever. Flipping the obscenely large switch, the lights several dozen feet overhead hummed to life, bathing the hanger in light. As soon as a lights came on, the first thing that registered in Zeke's mind were large teeth and long claws.

In less than a heartbeat, he instinctually drew his rifle and had it pointed to the beast he was currently face to face with. Luckily, his brain kicked in and he was able to register what exactly he was seeing before he could do something stupid, like shooting. Lowering lis weapon and nesting it once more across his back, Zeke took in the zergling's position.

Leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the doorway, sitting on one leg with the other sprawled out to the side, right arm resting stretched far ahead with the other arm resting almost flat underneath. Simply, it looked as if it were trying to roll over, but the wall was in it's way. As if on cue, it's shoulder dipped slightly, slipped from it's place on the wall, and it did roll...sort of. Had the zergling been awake, it may have been able to tuck it's head and properly roll harmlessly. But seeing as how it was still fast asleep, as soon as it's shoulder dropped, it's face fell limply to the floor with a loud, metallic "clang".

Zeke tried not to burst out laughing when he saw all this happening. When the zergling jolted upright from it's rude awakening though, he couldn't help but laugh at the comical expression on it's face; slack-jawed, glassy-eyed, with it's head slightly tilted to one side.

"Jeeze Kip, you damn near gave me a heart attack." Instead in the of the feral position a normal zergling would assume in this situation, Kip took on a position that resembled something more like that of a confused puppy; one leg propped up, one out to the side, both arms in front, and the head tilted to the side. After a couple seconds of silence between the two, it cocked it's head to the other side with the same slack-jawed expression. A small smirk played on Zeke's lips. "And I thought I told you not to sleep in the hanger." At this, it's shoulders sagged a bit and it's head lowered. The solid teal colored patches that usually adorned it's body, slowly blended into a navy blue around the edges.

Zeke immediately felt a pang of guilt at the noticeable change. "Hey Kip," It looked up with it's large puppy-dog, unusually large and grotesquely disfigured puppy-dog, eyes. "We're going to Barrens, come on." Kip immediately perked up, the teal patches bleeding into a bright cyan, and hopped into the box of a nearby, large military transport truck. Zeke let out a small chuckle as the got in the cab and turned on the engine.

* * *

"So?" Cole asked back in the control room.

"'So' what?" The girl asked back, slightly nervous about being alone with him.

"So, what do you think?"

She just stared at him for a moment, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. "I think exactly what i said. It's a little earlier than normal, but nothing serious."

"Mackenzie!" She flinched at both the tone of his voice, aswell as the use of her full name. He didn't do that unless he was serious. "This is the fourth time this month. The second time this week. Zeke isn't here, so talk to me straight."

She gave a disheaved sigh before taking a deep breath in to continue. "I don't know what's wrong. It's happening a lot earlier than it should; almost a full month ahead of schedule. Something's happening with them, something new, something that shouldn't be happening and we're not prepared for." She ran a shaking hand through her hair.

The older man studied her troubled expression. "Maybe you should get some sleep. Take a nap to get your bearings. I can take care of thing up here for a while." The worry clearly showed in his voice.

She gave him a grateful smile, but said she was fine. After an unconvinced and worried look came over his face, she continued, "I'm fine, really. If it makes you feel better, i'll get some rest after i finish a few more of these tests. Okay?"

After receiving an obviously fake smile from her, he sighed and caved in, knowing she wouldnt budge. "...Okay, but don't push yourself too hard." With the same unconvinced and worried look on his face, he left her alone to get some rest himself.


	3. Close contact

The sun beat down relentlessly on the dark, military transport vehicle. Though the windows were open due to the trucks lack of proper air-conditioning, it provided little, if any, relief to the two occupants inside. Behind the wheel of said truck, Zeke ran a hand over his face, trying to wipe the sweat from his eyes. "You okay back there?" he asked his current traveling companion. When all he received in return was a disgruntled snort, he finished with an unenthusiastic "same here."

Moments later, the truck swerved slightly as a second sun burst over the horizon, temporarily blinding the driver. After regaining his bearings, he took a moment to observe the phenomenon before him; a sunrise in the middle of the day. Shortly afterwards, he dropped the visor in front of the windshield to block the sun from his eyes.

With the arrival of the second sun, the scenery began to change drastically. The already sparse shrubbery that littered the Badlands became even more scarce; little more than the odd patch of grass , dead tree or small bush every now and then. The air became hotter and dryer. As the air grew dryer, so did the soil. Large cracks in the shape of huge spider webs covered the terrain. Dirt became dust and dust became sand, expanding into an endless desert.

With the planet's axis being, somehow, almost completely perpendicular to the sun, half the planet stays in perpetual daylight. This, in addition to a second sun, created clearly defined borders. On one side of the world is the Badlands; the only hospitable part of the planet. On the other side is No Man's Land; a giant scorching desert, too hot and bleak for anything to live long in, that covers half the globe. The roughly 30 km stretch between these two "extremes" is called the Barrens; more desolate than the Badlands, but not as hot as No Man's Land.

"We're here." Zeke announced. Kip sluggishly sat up, trying to get a better view out the windshield from his seat in the canvas covered box of the truck. Sure enough, up ahead in the distance was a lone figure, shuffling towards the desert. Zeke stopped the truck atop a small incline and killed the engine, grabbing his rifle from the passenger seat as he stepped out of the cab. He walked up to the front of the truck and placed his right foot on the front bumper. Unlike Kip, Zeke didn't notice the smell of burning rubber. He placed his hands on the hood to push himself on top. He immediately let out a long hiss of pain and a colorful string of curses as he pulled his hands away, falling to his back as he lost his balance.

Looking to the side when he heard a short snort and chortle, he saw a thoroughly entertained Kip with a smug look on his beastly face. Standing up from his previous prone position in the sand, he quickly inspected his hands to make sure they weren't seriously burned, then shot Kip a vicious glare. Instead of backing down from the look like he did back in the garage, the zergling just kept on chuckling in it's animalistic manner.

"Yeah, yeah...laugh it up." Zeke grumbled as he walked around to the box of the truck, the scowl still on his face. He grabbed a large jug of water out of the back and brought it back around to the front. Steam hissed into the air as the water made contact with the dark, heated metal of the hood and roof. Excess water rolled over the edges and down the sides of the vehicle. Zeke continued to douse the truck for a few more minutes until the water jug was empty, and it's previous contents didn't instantly turn to vapor upon contact.

After the metal finally cooled down somewhat, he climbed onto the hood, bringing his previously discarded rifle with him. Sitting on the roof of the cab with one leg raised and the other hung over the edge, he rested his elbow on his propped up knee and shouldered his rifle. He spent the next minute or so just observing the hulking beast through the scope. As the Hydralisk trudged towards the desert, it kept twitching and shuddering, as if every muscle in it's body were spasming sporadically. The purple patches that adorned it's body seemed even more vibrant and intense in the harsh sunlight.

Zeke cocked his rifle and lined up his sights, carefully taking aim. Because the stray unit's back was facing the truck, the crosshair of Zeke's rifle lined up with the center of the large carapace on it's bulky shoulders. The thin black "X" of the scope moved down, past it's massive back plate, past the covered junction where it's serpent-like tail began, and slowly continued down it's back bone. Suddenly, a six inch long projectile burst from the barrel of the weapon. The 10 foot tall Hydralisk jerked to a stop and turned towards the sound made by the rifle, right before the tranquilizer dart penetrated the leathery skin of it's tail, mere inches from it's spine. It's shoulders sagged slightly, before collapsing completely.

After Kip hoped back into the box of the truck, and Zeke re-entered the drivers seat, they sped off towards the unconscious brute. They pulled up to the sleeping figure and parked a few feet ahead of it. Kip hopped out of the back with a rope in his teeth, and Zeke stepped out of the cab to take the cord from Kip's mouth. He dropped the tailgate and laid down a ramp leading into the back of the truck. With the coiled cable in his hand, he went to fasten it to the Hydalisk. As he ran the rope across it's chest and under it's arms, he noticed a small trickle of dried blood running down from the tiny holes that served as it's ears.

Taking the unfastened end of the rope, Zeke climbed into the box of the truck, and threaded the cord through a steel ring a few inches wide, welded to the floor. He got back out of the truck and began pulling on the rope. Even though this makeshift pulley system made it easier, since he could pull instead of having to push the body, it was still hard as hell to move the several hundred pound deadweight. Sure he'd done it plenty of times before, but it was still exhausting and a pain in the ass to do.

"How 'bout a little help, huh?" he grunted when he noticed Kip simply watching his struggles silently. "Lazy bum." Zip gave a soft growl in response to the last comment, but grabbed the rope in it's teeth and began to pull nonetheless. Slowly, ever so slowly, the limp figure on the ground began to slide in the sand towards the ramp. Five minutes and one pulled muscle later, Zeke was covered in a liberal spritzing of perspiration, and the Hydralisk had moved a total of less than two feet. It really didn't help matters much that Kip seemed to be taking great pleasure in seeing Zeke suffer. It was obvious he wasn't trying very hard; Kip could've dragged the body all by himself if he wanted to, and with the two of them working together, they could've had it in the back of the truck in under a minute. Apparently, Zeke's earlier comment had struck a nerve in him though, and he was going to make sure Zeke regretted calling him a "lazy bum."

After another minute with little progress, Zeke finally snapped. "Fine, you win! Happy now?" Kip's low chuckles quickly died down as the rope fell from his suddenly slack jaw. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called you a lazy bum! Now will you quit being an ass and help me pull?" Zeke stood there for a moment, seething. When Kip crouched into an attack position and began to growl though, he decided it was best not to provoke him any further.

Kip began to growl louder, muscles tensed and the spikes on his back bristled. Kip took a threatening step forward, towards Zeke. Startled by his companion's sudden hostility, he got ready to run to the truck, until he heard loud raspy breathing behind him. The rope fell from his hand as his grip loosened and eyes went wide with shock, when he turned around. Standing less than a dozen feet away from him, was a groggy, but conscious, Hydralisk.

The towering creature shook it's head a few times to gain it's bearings and observe it's surroundings, before turning to the two smaller beings. It's muscles rippled as it began to open it's chest plates, where hundreds of razor sharp spikes lay in wake. Zeke felt a tug at his foot, and looked down. He was standing on the rope. Quickly reaching down and picking up the discarded line, he began pulling as hard as he could. A confused look passes over the Hydralisk's features. It looked down at the rope still across it's chest and let out a sickening roar, it's previous shock and confusion replaced by anger as the rope prevented it's deadly chest cavity from being exposed.

Zeke's panicked mind frantically tried to analyze the situation: the sedative meant to last several hours wore off in under 15 minutes, a pissed off Hydralisk stood less than ten feet away, there was no help for over 100km, and the lives of all three involved literally depended on a game of Tug of War. Peppered with sweat, it took all of Zeke's strength to keep the Hydralisk's chest plate closed. He was both terrified and amazed at how powerful the muscles in it's chest were, since he had to use his entire body just to match it. Dread seized a hold of Zeke's being and rocked him to his very core at what happened next.

Shaking the last remnance of sleep from it's system, the Hydralisk ceased trying to attack with it's spines and instead began to slither forward, scythes poised ahead. Every horrifying foot the Hydralisk slithered forward, dragged Zeke an extra foot closer to the arms of death as well. Zeke was all out of ideas and knew he didn't have much longer to live, when Kip snapped out of his primal state of mind and recovered enough sense to pick up the rope and help pull. With the two of them working together, they manages to slow the Hydralisk down, but this would only buy them so much time. The Hydralisk was visibly struggling, but was still gaining ground.

The two smaller players in this morbid Tug of War of death were quickly tiring too though. In an endurance test, the Hydralisk would easily win. They couldn't outlast it, and there was no way they'd be able to overpower it. They had to think of something, and fast; they were only a few feet away from being within reach of those deadly blades. The rifle caught Zeke's eye from it's place in the sand a few feet away from him.

He could've cried when he remembered how little it would help him here. The rifle could only hold one dart at a time, and he didn't reload it after he shot the Hydralisk the first time. He had a case with four extra darts in it, but the case was in the cab of the truck. Besides, with the amount of adrenalin pumping through all three of them, the Hydralisk would still kill them before it finally collapsed.

They were only a few more seconds away from being within reach, when he got a sudden idea. "I need to get something from the cab." he whispered to Kip. nodding towards the front of the truck. "As soon as I let go, you lunge at him. Okay?" Still with the rope in his mouth and grunting with effort, Kip managed a slight nod and slightly shifted his weight to his hind legs. Zeke took a deep breath, then continued. "Okay. One, two...three!" On the final count, Zeke let go of the rope and ran around to the front of the truck, giving the Hydralisk a wide berth.

As soon as Zeke let go, Kip dropped the rope too, and lunged at his opponent. The zergling's sudden attack, as well as the unexpected jolt forward from the rope's lack of resistance, knocked the Hydralisk off balance and onto it's back. The fallen Hydralisk caught a quick glimpse of one of the figures running to the vehicle, well out of reach, before turning it's attention to the creature currently clawing and biting at it.

Zeke ran to the front of the truck and threw open the driver's side door. The snarls and growls of battle already filling the air. He reached under the drivers seat and pulled out a heavy, metal toolbox. He lifted the lid and began rummaging through it, the assortment of tools making an awful racket. "Damn it!" he shouted, slamming a handful of tools back into the metal toolbox.

A shrill screech suddenly filled the air, followed by an unsettling silence. Zeke held his breath, straining to hear a sound. His heart began to beat erratically when he heard the soft shifting of sand. He clutched a heavy wrench in each hand, but began to shake when his towering opponent appeared from around the back of the truck into view. He began throwing tools at the beast; wrenches, drills, screwdrivers, hammers, anything and everything within reach. It did little except for further aggravating it.

He reached into the toolbox only to discover it empty, so in one last effort, he grabbed one of the side handles of the metal box, and swung it as hard as he could. The blow stunned it, but only for a few seconds. He took a step back, knowing he had nowhere left to run. They stared each other down, they both knew he was doomed. A lone, unarmed human stood no chance against an angry Hydralisk, in the middle of a desert.

A high pitched squeal stole both their attentions, before Kip leapt onto the Hydralisk's back. While it was still momentarily distracted, Zeke quickly dove through the open door of the truck. From his place on the floor, he got a clear view under both chairs in the cab. Sure enough, there lying on the floor under the _passenger_ seat, was exactly what he was looking for. He grabbed it and crawled back out. Scrambling out of the vehicle, he tripped and looked up just in time to see the Hydralisk throw Kip off it's back. It continued to advance toward Kip's battered form, giving Zeke a clear view of it's back.

He lifted the pistol and fired two shots into it's fleshy tail, nicking it's spine. It immediately pitched forward, crashing face first to the ground. Clawing it's way with it's powerful arms, it struggled to drag it's limp hind quarters. Zeke took a few steps towards the crippled Hydralisk, took careful aim, and took one final shot, completely severing the spine at the base of the neck.

When he was sure the Hydralisk was dead, he ran to Kip's battered body. Kip slowly got back to his feet with a little help from Zeke. Though the injured zergling did stagger slightly, he did not fall back down. As Kip leaned against the side of the truck to catch his breath, Zeke inspected his various wounds. He was covered in nicks and scratches, even a few decent sized chips were knocked off his carapace. He also had two vicious looking gashes. One running along his left side, starting from under his left arm, going all the way to his hip bone. The other, a deep stab wound just behind his collar bone. Though the injuries were fairly severe, Zeke knew that Kip would be just fine due to the zerglings rapid healing rate. It would probably take over an entire week, but afterwards, Kip would be good as new.

As the zergling continued to rest, Zeke re-positioned the truck, re-tied the rope around the dead Hydralisk, and re-threaded the line back through the ring welded to the floor. Even though he was still seriously wounded, Kip helped Zeke pull the body into the back of the truck. He hopped in as well and promptly fell asleep. Quickly gathering the scattered tools and tossing them back in the toolbox, he placed it back under the seat along with the rifle. It was only after he climbed back in the drivers seat and finally started heading home, did his heart rate slow down to normal.

He pressed down harder on the gas, anxious to get home, and get the body analyzed. Something serious was happening, and the corpse in the back was going to tell him exactly what.


	4. Questions

_The brakes squealed slightly as the truck pulled to a stop, a cloud of dust slowly settling behind it. The door of the dark grey pickup, appearing more dark-tan due to the caked-on dirt, opened to reveal a young, dark-haired man. Cole, eighteen years old, stepped out of the truck and looked up at the structure in front of him. A large hanger, a little less than forty feet high, lay a few dozen feet away from a three-story tall tower._

_This was the outpost, roughly 50km west of the main base. The facility was originally intended to serve as a lookout and provide early warning for the main lab. Soon after its completion however, this purpose proved to be impractical. It was then mainly used for collecting weather data and information storage, due to its excess space and enhanced sensors. Though it was built to be able to comfortably accommodate a four-man crew, making it possible for round-the-clock surveillance and information processing, the facility had been unmanned for the past several years since most of its various instruments were entirely automated._

_Opening a small side door to the large garage, Cole began collecting various tools needed for maintenance on the tower. Deciding to leave the truck outside instead of going through the trouble of parking it in the hanger, he made his way into the tower to begin its routine repairs. Other than some minor aesthetic details, like burnt out lights, squeaking doors, rusted panels and such, due to neglect, the compound remained in fairly good condition. After an hour or two of changing burnt out circuits and checking, resetting, and re-calibrating various sensors, he was almost ready to head back home. After a quick once-over of everything, he headed back out to the hanger to put the tools back._

_After a few minutes of leisurely driving, he noticed something grey billowing in the distance. It was smoke. His eyes widened in horror when he realized this. There was only one thing in that direction that could possibly be burning; the base. He stomped the accelerator as far as it would go, trying to get home as fast as possible.

* * *

_

Cole was broken from his memories by the sound of the large garage door opening. He lifted his head out from under the hood of the vehicle he was working on, and turned his head toward the sound. A large, dark transport truck began pulling in before the door even finished opening all the way. He was more than a little curious since Zeke shouldn't have been back for at least another half-hour or so. The door of the truck burst open, then slammed shut loudly after Zeke stepped out.

"Where's Kenzie?!" he growled out.

Cole was slightly taken aback by Zeke's aggravated tone. "I don't know. Why?"

"Find her and tell her to meet me in the lab. I need to talk to her. Both of you."

"What's this about?" Cole was starting to get annoyed by Zeke's lack of explanation.

"Look in the back of the truck!"

Zeke began to leave the room, but Cole wasn't satisfied with not having any answers. "Why are you so upset? What's going on? What happened?!" He called at Zeke's retreating form before it disappeared out the door.

"Just find her!" Zeke's voice yelled from out of sight.

Cole heaved a slight sigh. He really didn't want to deal with Zeke's attitude right now. He walked around to the back of the truck to see what Zeke was talking about. He took a step back in shock when he saw the towering carcass of the dead Hydralisk, the pooling blood slowly lining the floor of the box. Cole's annoyance toward Zeke's anxiety completely vanished at that point. No wonder he was so on edge. He quickly left the hanger to search for Mackenzie in the tower.

* * *

Zeke burst into his sleeping quarters and headed straight for his nightstand. They each had their own 8x10 foot room with a standard cot, nightstand, and trunk that fit under the bed. Nothing spectacular, just a place to sleep, and keep personal belongings. Opening the top drawer, he pulled out a pistol and holster. Reaching under his bed, he pulled out a large, dark, heavy chest. Opening the lock and lifting the lid, he pulled out two more handguns and holsters. After fastening one set on himself, he closed the chest, locked it, and returned it back to its place under the bad. With the two spare weapons in hand, he headed straight to the lab.

Mackenzie and Cole were already deep in conversation when Zeke walked in. As soon as they noticed him walking in the room, they stopped talking and waited for Zeke to start explaining.

"Before I start, take these." He said, handing each of them a pistol and holster in turn.

"Why do we need these?" Mackenzie enquired after being handed her weapon.

"Because I was just attacked and I don't want to take any chances."

"Zee, you're being paranoid."

"Maybe I am Cole, but I'd rather be paranoid than dead."

"Fine. You win. Now start explaining."

After giving a play by play of the events after Zeke's departure to detain the rogue Zerg unit, the three of them headed to the hanger to get a closer inspection of the body. Kip was still asleep, but had moved to a clean area of floor beside the door. When they looked in the box of the truck, they understood why. The entire truck bed was lined with blood, and was slowly dripping onto the garage floor; the smell was overpowering.

"Mac, take some samples and start analyzing them in the lab for me."

"No problem, Cole." She took some quick blood and tissue samples and left the hanger, still with a slightly shocked look on her face.

"Zee, I need you to help me move the body up to the lab."

Heaving a sigh, he quickly ran his hand over his face. "I'll be right back with the cart." With that, he disappeared into the back of the hanger, shoulders slumped.

* * *

After struggling to get the body on the cart, wheeling it to the service elevator behind the tower, and navigating some narrow halls, they finally made it to the large double doors of the lab. As soon as the lab doors opened, before they could even set foot inside, they were met by Mackenzie's voice.

"They're changing."

"What do you mean 'they're changing'?" questioned Zeke, taking in her puzzled expression with one of his own.

"I mean, they're changing. As in, 'not the same as they used to be.'" When all she received were more confused looks, she continued. "You said yourself that the sedatives didn't work like they should have. I designed those sedatives specifically for these Zerg. If it's not working, then it's because they're changing. I also found something weird in the samples."

"What did you find? And 'changing' how?" Cole asked.

"Well, I know _what's _in the samples. I just don't know _how_ it got there. And I won't know how they've changed until I've cut this one open."

Both Zeke and Cole started to tense. They knew how obsessive she could get when didn't understand something. She never quit until she got the answers she was looking for. When she gets like that, it takes its toll on all three on them. At least when she finished, they'd have a few more answers.


End file.
